What To Do When You’ve Lost Your Pet …

Types of Identification

Never underestimate the value of the dog tag! It is the single most important thing you can do to insure that your pet can be identified and returned home. It is cheap, and readily available.

Microchip! It is a permanent means of identification, so your pet will never lose it! In addition, if properly registered, it is proof that you are the owner of the animal. Make sure you keep this info up to date.

Ads in Publications (craigslist, local and city-wide newspapers, online ads)

The most effective listings for a lost animal give the following information:

Where the animal was lost: City and street name, with cross streets.

When the animal was lost: Date and a general time of day, if known.

A description of the animal, including color and markings: Name, age, approximate size and/or weight and sex. Giving a breed or species name is not enough. Be specific with unusual markings, and mention if the animal was wearing tags, a collar or a microchip.

Contact Information: You must include contact information: Name, phone number, and email are strongly suggested.

Other information: The circumstances of how your animal was lost can be helpful, for instance, if your dog was frightened by fireworks, he may have spent quite a while running. If you are offering a reward, this is where it would be mentioned.

Social Media

Post on Facebook

Send to friends & family

Post this info to shelter sites if available

Creating a Flyer

You don’t need anything fancy to get the word out about your lost pet! Grab a piece of paper and a marker, and get to work! All you really need is:

A clear, recent photo of your pet, and

A phone number where someone will answer calls or where there is an answering machine.

THAT’S IT!

Distributing Flyers

Flyers can be posted in local pet shops, shelters, grooming businesses, veterinarians, or any other pet friendly place (with permission from the business owner). Hand them out to people in the neighborhood who regularly walk the area.

Although finding a lost animal often seems to depend on luck, it is luck you can help make.

Knock on doors and talk to people in the neighborhood.

Hand out flyers with your pet’s picture on them and your contact information.

Go to alllocal shelters yourself, at least every other day, even if your pet has tags.

GO TO THE SHELTERS — Don’t Just Call!

Your pet may not yet be listed in the records at the front desk, and the way you describe your pet may not be the way a shelter describes your dog. Sometimes it takes more than a few days for a pet to be picked up and brought to a shelter. Check the shelter’s website—many post photos of animals brought in.

It’s important to visit all the shelters within 20 miles of where your pet was lost. If someone took your pet in for a few days hoping you would knock on their door and ask about it, they might later drop your pet off at the shelter that’s most convenient for them DON’T GIVE UP!